GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?

The lamps in the temple were not made from lightstones. They were electric lamps which were so bright that made the surroundings look like true day.

It was the first time he was seeing electric lamps in this world. But he was no stranger to them. So he didn’t gawk like everyone else. He went straight to the business he came for.

He found a priest and asked him for help making the patent. The priest was in oily overalls. He looked no different from an ordinary worker.

The main difference between the priest and an ordinary person were his glowing eyes. This marked him as a godclad.

Legion was sure of this when he saw the priest lift a large engine with one normal-looking arm. It was a display of unnatural strength, which confirmed that the priest wasn’t ordinary.

The priest led him to a small, quiet room at the back of the factory. This was the only part of the factory that had any resemblance to a church.

There were pews, an altar, and a statue of the god of steam. This statue was of a humanoid being with metal limbs and pipes poking out of his body in various places.

He could tell that the god of steam was half metal, half flesh because the statue had been painted vividly. The statue was truly well done.

The state’s vivid features aren’t completely because of mortal skill in crafting it. There was also the matter of the divinity contained in the statue. It made his eyes hurt staring at the statue.

He bowed his head to avoid staring at the statue. Then he approached the altar little by little and placed his patent on it.

The altar was a large anvil. It was surrounded by candles and lamps of different colors.

Once his patent fell on the altar, the priest began the ceremony of the sacrifice. The priest lit some incense and said some prayers.

The only part that Legion had to do in the sacrifice was to place one silver coin on the altar. It was his one week’s pay, but he had to give it up now to show his sincerity.

The sacrifice wouldn’t be completed until he sacrificed one silver. It is the minimum amount needed to draw the attention of the god of craft.

He can give more money. The more money he gives, the more attention he will draw from the god of steam, and the faster his patent will be approved.

But before he could sacrifice his silver, the god of steam looked over. A pair of bright eyes suddenly appeared above the altar.

The eyes were so bright, they were like stars. It could also be because the presence of the eyes caused every lamp and candle in the vicinity to flare up and explode in brightness.

Legion and the priest were stunned by the brightness. They became blind temporarily. Legion was stunned and even fainted.

Fortunately, the eyes didn’t stay for long. Something about his patent had drawn the god’s attention. It came for the patent and left immediately after taking it.

The appearance of the eye was brief. It came and left in less than a second. But Legion’s unconsciousness took a while.

When he woke up 15 minutes later, he found the priest and many other priests looking at him intensely. There was shock, surprise, and jealousy in their eyes.

The light in the room had all gone out. But there was one source of light in the room that wasn’t destroyed by the appearance of the god’s attention.

It was a golden rune. The rune was in the shape of a gear. It was levitating above the altar and producing light.

When Legion saw this rune, he knew that his patent had been approved. He patted himself and struggled to stand up from where he lay.

The high priest went up to him and helped him to stand up. Then he asked him, “What was in that patent?”

He replied as he stood up from his prone position, “You should ask your god.”

The priest was solemn after hearing that. If the patent hadn’t been approved, he might have considered using force to get the information out of Legion.

But even if he was bold, he wouldn’t dare use force in the temple right in front of the altar. That would be blaspheming the god of steam.

He would have to wait until Legion was outside of the temple before using force. Unfortunately, that option is out of the window now that the patent has been approved.

So he could only say, “Your patent has been approved. You just need to finalize the arrangement.”

Legion nodded and went up to the golden rune. He touched it and received the message contained within it.

The golden gear said, “Your patent has been approved, and your royalty has been set to 10% of the gross sales of any product that uses your technology.”

This message was normal. Usually, royalty ranged from 5 to 10%. His was on the high side, but he wasn’t surprised by it.

He wasn’t surprised by the other message contained within the rune either.

“I, the god of steam, appreciate your talent. For your good work, I will give you a boon. This boon will increase your talent for machines. Just become a godclad of the machine pathway.”

This message was not normal. It wasn’t rare, as people who have made extraordinary contributions to the gods often receive boons. But these people usually belong to the pathway of the gods.

Rarely are boons offered to someone outside the pathway. But Legion wasn’t surprised by it because he knew the worth of what was contained in his patent.

If he accepts this boon, he can become a godclad with the help of the church of steam. They will help him prepare his existence and provide the divine flesh for him to ascend.

He will gain power if he accepts the boon. The only catch is that he will have to join the machine pathway.